Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

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EU hails Qaddafi's death

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Berlin, Oct 20, IRNA -- The European Union on Thursday hailed the reported death of Muammar Qaddafi, saying it signaled 'the end of despotism.'

'The reported death of Muammar Gaddafi marks the end of an era of despotism and repression from which the Libyan people have suffered for too long,' EU President Herman Van Rompuy and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said in a joint statement released in Brussels.

'Today Libya can turn a page in its history and embrace a new democratic future,' they added.

Rompuy and Barroso urged Libya's new de-facto government, the National Transitional Council, to start a 'broad based reconciliation process' to unify Libya's political groups and open the way for a 'democratic, peaceful and transparent transition.'

Qaddafi is believed to have been killed earlier in the day during an attack by NTC forces on his hometown Sirte.